Always and Forever
by ChoCedric
Summary: A tender moment between Ron and Hermione at Shell Cottage after the horrors of Malfoy Manor. "Hermione, please wake up," Ron whispered, praying for her to open her eyes. "I can't do this without you. God, you don't know how scared I am."


Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

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Always and Forever

By: ChoCedric

Ron felt the feeling of being squeezed through a tube as he apparated away from the pure terror of Malfoy Manor. Shell Cottage, Shell Cottage, he thought frantically, holding Hermione in his arms. The chandelier had just fallen on her, and Ron prayed with all his heart that she was all right. Please don't die, please don't die, he chanted to himself, shuddering at the mere thought that the beautiful girl might never wake up again. He didn't want to even think about what would happen if that occurred.

To his utter relief, a moment later, he found himself right outside Shell Cottage. "Somebody help me!" he shouted, keeping Hermione safe in his arms. He continued to shout for help until he heard running footsteps. It was his older brother, Bill, and his wife, Fleur, who came running out of their home.

"Ron, what on Earth is the matter? What are you doing here? What's happened? Is that Hermione? Is she ... is she ..." Bill stopped, not wanting to say the last word. He had a feeling he knew how Ron felt about the girl he was holding.

"God, no!" Ron shouted, speaking far louder than he had intended to. "She's not, all right? Just get us inside! She needs help!"

"Okay, calm down, Ron. She's going to be fine," Bill soothed, starting to run towards the house. Ron kept pace with him and Fleur, still holding tightly to Hermione.

"Where's 'Arry?" Fleur asked.

"He's coming," Ron answered. To be honest, he couldn't care less about Harry right now. All that mattered was the bushy-haired girl he was holding close. Nothing would be right if he didn't have Hermione. Absolutely nothing.

They ran into the house, up the stairs, and into Bill and Fleur's room. "Fleur, you can take care of her, right?" asked Bill in a concerned tone. "I'll get Harry to explain what happened to those three."

"She weel be fine, Bill," answered Fleur gently. She squeezed Bill's hand, and he went back downstairs.

Fleur helped to undress Hermione, and Ron would have been elated if the situation wasn't so dire. He had fantasized about seeing Hermione like this for ages, but now wasn't the time. She was hurt, and she needed help. All he could think was, what if she doesn't make it? Then I'll never be able to tell her how I feel. He'd been such an idiot, leaving it this long to tell her.

Fleur found a beaded handbag inside Hermione's sock. "There's essence of Dittany in there," Ron explained, his voice shaking with worry. "You need to apply that to her wounds. We were attacked by Death Eaters, and Hermione was almost killed."

"Zat ees not good at all," said Fleur. That's the understatement of the century, thought Ron grimly. As she applied the Dittany to Hermione's wounds, and to her neck where Bellatrix had put the knife, her screams haunted Ron's mind. He'd never felt so helpless, watching the love of his life being tortured right in front of his eyes and being able to do nothing. He couldn't even imagine the amount of pain she had been in, to be screaming like that. All he could do was hope that she came out of this sane, all he could do was hope that her mind wouldn't be affected by the Cruciatus like Neville's parents. He shuddered again, picturing her in a room at St. Mungo's, only being able to scream and whimper.

After Fleur finished applying the Dittany, she asked, "Will you two be all right in here? I must go see to Bill and see if 'Arry ees all right."

"We'll be fine," said Ron. "I just hope she wakes up soon."

Fleur looked at him straight in the eye. "She weel be fine," she assured him. "I know how you feel about her."

Ron blushed. Am I that obvious? he wondered to himself. "Thank you, Fleur," he managed to say.

"You are most welcome," said Fleur, walking out of the room. Ron was left there with Hermione, watching her lying on the bed, breathing slowly. "'Mione, please wake up," he whispered, praying for her to open her eyes. He tenderly brushed the hair away from her face. "I can't do this without you. God, you don't know how scared I am."

Ron had not really cried since he was a little boy, but now he felt tears coming to his eyes. He loved this girl, really loved her, and he couldn't imagine life without her. His heart broke with pain just thinking about it. She has to be all right, she just has to be, he thought frantically. But the girl still did not awaken, and all he could do was watch her chest rise and fall, his own tears starting to run down his face. "Please, please wake up," he kept whispering over and over again. "I know I've been an idiot, I know I've been a prat, but if you just wake up, I'll make it all up to you, I promise."

He sat there for a few more minutes, and then he heard the most wonderful thing he could ever hear.

"Please don't cry, Ron." A soft voice broke through his sobs. He immediately brought his tear-filled eyes to Hermione, whose own eyes were fluttering open and focusing to look at him. "'Mione?" he said softly, hardly daring to hope.

"I'm here, Ron," Hermione said weakly. "I'm ... I'm all right."

Ron gently put his arms around her. "Oh Gods," he said, embarrassed to be crying in front of her; he'd never, ever done that before. He hurriedly tried to wipe the tears away from his face but felt a hand tenderly grip his. "It's okay, Ron." Hermione said.

"Thank God you're all right," Ron said, sniffling. "We're safe now. We're out of that horrible Malfoy Manor. We're at Shell Cottage, Bill and Fleur's home."

Hermione sighed with relief. She remained silent for a few seconds. Then she said, "I heard you, you know. You kept me sane through Bellatrix's torture. I heard you screaming my name and I knew you were trying to get to me. You saved me, Ron."

Ron looked into her eyes. "I did?" he asked in disbelief. "I felt so lost, 'Mione. I didn't think I could do anything for you. I've never felt so powerless in my whole life."

"You weren't powerless," Hermione whispered. "You helped me, more than you'll ever know."

"Wow," said Ron, not knowing what else to say. "You were so brave, 'Mione. I'm so proud of you. You did so well, even though that bitch wouldn't stop torturing you."

"Language, Ronald," Hermione chastised softly, and Ron couldn't help but smile. Hermione glanced at his face and her lips also formed into a tiny grin. "But thanks for saying I was brave. You were my happy thought that I could hold onto. I knew I had to come through for you and Harry, so I did what my heart and mind told me to do."

Ron squeezed her hand. "You were wonderful," he said honestly. "But I've never been so scared. You don't know how close you came to dying, how close I came to losing you. When I heard that they were just going to dispose of you and that they thought you were nothing but a filthy little you-know-what, I just felt frantic." Ron had never really expressed himself in so many words before, he found himself often having trouble doing that. But this was Hermione, the girl who'd known him for seven years, the girl he'd gone on life-threatening adventures with, the girl he'd had so many arguments with he couldn't even count them all, but above anything else, the girl he loved more than life itself.

"The word's mudblood, Ron," Hermione told him quietly.

"Please, don't call yourself that," Ron said, his voice full of emotion. "You're beautiful, you're not just something that should be gotten rid of."

Hermione looked gratefully at him. "Thank you," she said. "And I know you were scared. I also know I came close to dying. But I want you to know something. I'd made peace with the fact that I might not make it. This is war, Ron. We're in the middle of a war, and both of us know we might not come out of this alive. But if I hadn't made it, I wouldn't have wanted you to be sad for me, to mope around and think about the what ifs. I've loved spending the last seven years sharing experiences with you and Harry, and you know that both of us knew the risks when we decided to help Harry on his Horcrux search. And I want you to know something else, Ron. If I would have died, I wouldn't have wanted you to blame yourself, and I also wouldn't have wanted you to blame Harry."

"But he was the one who got us caught," Ron mumbled. "He was the one who said You-Know-Who's name."

"I know," said Hermione, "but it still really wasn't his fault. And you also know Harry would've blamed himself. You know what he's like."

"I know," said Ron. "And I feel bad for harboring any resentment towards him. He's our friend too, and I know he didn't mean to get us caught." He continued to keep his arms around Hermione, his head on her chest, listening to her heartbeat. It was the most comforting sound ever, a sound he was so relieved to be hearing. "'Mione?" he said after a few minutes of comfortable silence.

"Yes, Ron?"

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?"

"For being such a prat the last few years. For all the pain I caused you. For the whole Lavender thing, for being angry with you over Viktor, for abandoning you and Harry on the Horcrux search. I'll make it all up to you, I promise."

"You know I've already forgiven you for those things," Hermione told him, smiling softly. "And I'm sorry, too. I'm sorry I went to Slughorn's party with McLaggen, I'm sorry I ignored you or was nasty to you a lot last year, and I'm sorry I was so angry when you found Harry and I again this year."

"You know I've also forgiven you for those things," Ron repeated the words she'd just said to him. "As for you being angry with me, I deserved it." He sighed softly. "You know you mean the world to me, don't you?"

Hermione looked at him, her eyes expressing all that she felt. "Thank you," she said. "You know you mean the world to me too."

"Thank you. i don't know how I would live if something happened to you, honestly," Ron said. "You're everything to me."

"Oh, you know you'd have managed," Hermione said mischievously. "You'd have to make your own notes instead of copying mine." Ron let out a chuckle and grinned at her. "But honestly," she said, growing serious again, "I don't know how I could go on without you either. Even through all our silly fights, you've meant and still mean more to me than I could ever express."

Ron smiled gently down at her. "'Mione, I have to tell you something else," he said.

"What's that?"

Ron looked into her gentle eyes again. He was silent for a moment, preparing himself for what he was about to say. Finally he whispered, "I love you."

Hermione's eyes widened in surprise. Then a truly beautiful smile shone on her face. "I love you too, Ron," she said truthfully, and the two embraced again. Then, softly and gently, their lips found each other, and they shared a tender kiss, their first kiss.

"I'll always be here for you. Even if I don't make it through this war, just look for me in your heart and you'll find me." Hermione told him.

"I will," promised Ron. "And you do the same for me if I don't make it, too."

"I will."

"Now you get some rest, okay?" Ron told her gently. "I don't want you out of this bed until you feel better. Do I make myself clear?" He tried to adopt a stern tone, but couldn't help it when his face broke into a smile.

"Oh, Ron," Hermione sighed, her eyes twinkling. "All right, all right."

Ron took her hand in his and watched her breathe in and out as she slowly drifted back off to sleep.

With her by his side, he knew he'd be all right. He vowed to himself that he'd always keep her close, and he'd never let her go. He'd love her forever, until his dying day, and even afterwards. He gently dropped a kiss on her cheek as he watched her sleep. "I love you," he whispered again. "Always and forever."

Maybe it was a trick of the light, but he thought he saw Hermione's lips quirk upwards once more.

Fin


End file.
